


You Heard Me on the Wind (Whispering My Love For You)

by fueledbyfiction



Category: Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Gen, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-28
Updated: 2019-10-28
Packaged: 2021-01-05 18:14:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21212933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fueledbyfiction/pseuds/fueledbyfiction
Summary: Ronan and Opal miss Adam when he's away at college.





	You Heard Me on the Wind (Whispering My Love For You)

**Author's Note:**

> this was originally supposed to be a fluffy oneshot where adam reads a bedtime story to opal over the phone, but i guess i was sadder about my mom being out of town than i thought, so here's this i guess.

Opal was having a tantrum in the middle of Walmart. Ronan was not entirely sure what had prompted it, but he suspected she was sleep-deprived and still mourning Adam's return to college. He could relate, but that did not mean that he wanted to deal with her outburst. 

Rather than trying to figure out what was wrong (that was usually fruitless when she was already upset) he hoisted her into the cart and started moving toward the cash registers. He could come back later for the rest of the things he needed. By the time he finished scanning the contents of the cart, Opal had calmed down a little. By the time they got to the car, she was coherent enough to talk. 

“What happened with you?”

Opal just sat there and kicked her legs against the seat. Ronan let out a long-suffering sigh. 

“Fine. Don't tell me.”

Another tear slipped down her cheek. She hiccuped, then said, “You'll make fun of me if I tell you.”

“Will not.”

“Will too.”

Ronan started the car. He wished Adam was here. He looked at the clock on the display. Adam would be just getting out of class. Maybe he'd be available to talk on the phone. Ronan reached across his grumpy child to the glove compartment, and after some searching, he pulled out his phone. He handed it to Opal with the instructions to call Adam. For once his phone was fully charged and functioning. It ruined Ronan’s reputation a little, but being stubborn with technology did not foster healthy long-term relationships. He knew that; he was trying to get better about that. He had to be ready for when Adam called after a long day, or when he wanted to call to reassure himself that Adam wasn't overworking himself too much. 

Adam picked up right away. Ronan could picture him sitting on a bench surrounded by the picturesque brick buildings and buzzing students, framed by the light of the afternoon sun. He belonged at university. He fit in perfectly with the other motivated students, with their library study sessions and their house parties and their protests against climate change in the square. He might not have been old money, but Adam was always so sure of himself, so classically handsome, and incredibly intelligent that he fit right in with the other Ivy Leauge attendees. 

After a few seconds of silence, Adam said, “Hello?”

Even though the only thing Opal wanted at that moment was to hear Adam’s voice, she was still angry, so she just bit out a curt, “Hi, Adam.”

“Are you fighting with Ronan again?” Adam asked. He sounded exasperated, but Ronan figured that he was happy they were at least trying to resolve the problem rather than just screaming at each other until neither of them had any anger left. Opal was silent.

“I thought we've been over this. You guys need to learn how to talk to each other.” They had been over this. Many, many times over the summer when Adam was staying at the Barns. 

This started a fresh round of tears. Adam decided to try a different strategy. “Ronan, are you there?”

There was silence on the line for a couple of seconds until Ronan spat out a “Yes.”

“What happened?”

“How should I know? The brat just started wailing in the middle of Walmart.” Ronan did not want to be a dad right now. Especially when his child was a temperamental dream-creature who only sometimes acted like a proper human. 

“Well, did you ask her about it?” Adam sounded disappointed, but Ronan tried not to think about it too much. 

“She only wanted to talk to you. She thinks I'll be mean to her.”

“What happened, Opal? Ronan can't help you if you won't talk to him. 

With another choked sob Opal said, “I lost my keys.”

“Your keys to what?” Adam seemed so baffled by the declaration that Ronan might have cracked a smile. Ronan had no idea what she was talking about either, but he had learned long ago that she was just a weird kid, and there was nothing to be done about it. 

“To my house and my mountain.”

“What?” Adam asked. Ronan suddenly felt bad for Adam. He hadn't asked for this either. 

“My keys,” Opal said, more forcefully this time, setting her jaw and crossing her arms. 

Ronan ran a hand over his head. He needed to try. “Opal, where did you get these keys?”

“I found them.”

“Okay, whatever. So you have these keys that you found that are for your house or whatever the fuck and you lost them. What do you want me to do about it? Get them back?”

“No!” Opal screamed. “I don't care about the dumb keys anymore. I just want Adam to come back!”

“You think I don't want that too? I miss him more than you do.” Ronan knew he was acting childish. 

“No! I love him more because he is mine! He reads me to sleep and makes me macaroni and gave me a Cinderella bandaid and he is nice to me!”

There was silence in the car for the better part of a minute. Then Adam, over the crackling phone line, whispered, “I miss you guys too.”

“Is everybody happy now?” Ronan asked, a sharpness slipping into his tone. He looked at Opal to confirm that she had, in fact, stopped crying, then looked down at the phone as if it would tell him anything about Adam's facial expressions or mood. He said, “Good.” 

Then he hit the end call button, throwing the phone back to Opal. He shifted the car into gear and peeled out of the Walmart parking lot with way more vigor than necessary. He sped out onto the highway, rolling down the windows and pushing the pedal to the metal. Opal yelled, “Kerah!” grinning from ear to ear and sticking her head out of the window. 

Fast cars and the adrenaline rushes that came with them always soothed any hard feelings between them. Like father, like daughter, Ronan guessed. 

Maybe he would make an effort in the coming months to call Adam more often and make sure Opal was there when he did. Maybe he would rent a hotel and go visit Adam for a couple of days. After all, he had to provide for Opal’s needs, and Opal clearly needed to see Adam. And if Ronan got to see him too? Well, that was even better.


End file.
